Shellharbour City Council has resolved to fund the replacement roof at Shellharbour City Stadium through the council's annual special rate variation.
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The SRV was introduced to provide funds to allow the council to "maintain and renew its assets and infrastructure". It will see rates rise by 43 per cent over a four-year period.
At last week's council meeting, Shellharbour resident Paul Hockey said funds raised through the SRV were designed for asset maintenance, but by using them to fund the roof replacement, the council was in fact "using SRV funds to cover up faulty workmanship and council's inability to take action against the original contractor".
User groups say problems with the roof date back to when the multimillion-dollar complex opened in 2000, although the council previously said the leaks were first noticed in 2005.
Problems with the roof left the council hundreds of thousands of dollars out of pocket through lost revenue, temporary solutions and failed legal action against the architects and project managers involved in the construction of the stadium.
In 2011, the council began legal action after a number of design and installation defects were identified. However, the council was later advised to cease the legal action because it was initiated after a prescribed 10-year time limitation following the issue of the occupation certificate.
The total cost to the council for the unsuccessful legal action was $284,974 after each party agreed to bear their own costs.
The replacement of the infamous "leaky roof" took place in 2014 at a total cost of $1.37 million. The council had hoped to obtain a low-interest loan on $986,000 through the NSW government's Local Infrastructure Renewal Scheme, which would have reduced repayments by $35,000 per year over the next 10 years.
However, the council's corporate policy director, Lee Furness, said the council was told there were "too many applications".
Shellharbour councillor John Murray said there was an acceptance the roof needed fixing and if the council didn't take out a loan, it would mean the entire maintenance budget for one year would be diverted to the roof.
A second stage of "improvement works" at the stadium, worth $222,050, would also receive funds through the SRV program.
Meantime, councillors have adopted a master plan for the Croom Regional Sporting Complex, which the proposed Albion Park Rail bypass will cut through.
Councillors enthusiastically welcomed a suggestion a motel could be built on land behind the stadium.
Cr Kellie Marsh said "opportunity is knocking", and it was important staff looked into the concept as soon as possible. "Money for accommodation keeps going to Kiama and to Wollongong ... motels can have enormous flow-on effects for a community," she said.